Vaibhav Sooryavanshi chose to give South Zone skipper Tilak Varma a taste of his own medicine as East Zone tightened their hold on the Duleep Trophy final on Day 4. After being the target of some remarks from Tilak on the first day of the summit match, Vaibhav approached the South Zone captain and gave him a few words in return.
In a final when East Zone had firmly taken control, the incident introduced a noteworthy undercurrent. In their first innings, East Zone scored an impressive 708, and on Day 4, South Zone was eight wickets behind while still pursuing that formidable total, putting them in a dangerous situation with little batting time left.
On Day 1, 15-year-old Sooryavanshi, the vice-captain of East Zone, was the target of a stump-mic moment when 23-year-old South Zone captain Tilak Varma made a pointed comment that called into doubt his vice-captaincy. Following that initial day, the conversation was widely shared and clearly captured on the stump microphone.
At the MA Chidambaram Stadium, East Zone, spearheaded by Ishan Kishan, went on to amass a huge 708 in their opening innings, severely taxing South Zone. East’s speed attack, which featured frequent strikes from Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar, was too much for South to handle. Even though the pitch was still favourable for batting, wickets kept falling, leaving South eight down and still far short of East’s first-innings total.
During the first innings of East Zone on September 6, 2026, Tilak was heard asking Suryavanshi, “Kya re ye vice-captain?” over the stump microphone. The comment, which was directed at the adolescent’s leadership position, went viral right away and brought attention to the two players’ different positions in the game as well as their age difference.
During that innings, Suryavanshi had given Tilak and the bowlers from the South Zone something to think about. Before being removed for 44 runs, the youthful player hit Mohammed Siraj for two fours and a six in a single over. Ishan Kishan will captain East Zone in the final, while the team’s pace attack includes Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar.
Tilak, for his part, scored 99 runs in South Zone’s innings before being removed just short of a century. This dismissal made it harder for South Zone to keep up with East Zone’s enormous first-innings total of 708.
